Yankees agree to terms with infielder D.J. LeMahieu

The New York Yankees sent a very clear message to all who think they’re still in on Manny Machado; No thanks. The Yankees agreed to a two year, $24M deal with infielder D.J. Lemahieu. Lemahieu was previously an All-Star in 2015 and 2017. He is a three time Gold Glove winner, and won the National League batting title in 2016.

The Yankees essentially put themselves out of the Manny Machado sweepstakes with this signing, although the movement of Miguel Andujar or Greg Bird could change things quickly. Lemahieu slides right into the super utility role for the Yankees, a big step up from Ronald Torreyes.

Lemahieu is a career .296 hitter, capping off in his batting title year at .348. He brings a fantastic glove, a great hitting approach, and a wealth of experience to the Yankees’ clubhouse. He may not be a sexy pickup and he may have cost them $24M, but would you rather have a super utility infielder who can step in at three positions for $24M or Manny Machado for 10 years and nearly $300M?

As mentioned before, this isn’t the sexy pickup the fans were looking for, but almost everything that the Yankees lacked last season in the infield Lemahieu can bring. Their poor defense, lack of contact, high strikeout rate and lack of a true utility player were all solved with this signing.

Who knows if the Yankees wind up getting Machado anyway and shipping someone off. It’s already a glut in the infield, and this signing proved nothing more than the Yankees are worried about depth, especially with the fragile nature of Troy Tulowitzki. This move deviates from the course Yankee fans are used to. Instead of breaking the bank on the top free agent target, they go with two cheaper options to round out the infield.